What Happens to U.S. Science and Tech Agencies During a Shutdown?

The U.S. Congress is currently gridlocked over a spending plan for the next fiscal year, and if they don’t reach an agreement by midnight tonight the government will shutdown.

But what would that mean for science and tech agencies? A lot of scientific experiments in the U.S. run through some kind of government agency, whether that means awarding grants for research or collecting data from experiments. Without funding, what happens?

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

NASA

Obviously, the astronauts aboard the space station would keep working, and a ground crew would continue monitoring the station and other important NASA spacecraft. Also cargo flights to the space station would launch as normal. We're not going to let our ISS residents starve.

However, upcoming NASA spacecraft could be delayed because of the shutdown. In particular, the James Webb Space Telescope, NASA’s replacement for the aging Hubble Space Telescope, could be pushed back weeks or months, depending on how long a shutdown lasts. The telescope is currently undergoing tests at NASA’s Johnson Space Center, and those tests would have to be postponed.

National Science Foundation

The NSF is one of the primary grant-giving agencies of the federal government, and all grant-giving functions end during a shutdown. That means researchers won’t be able to apply for or receive new grants for their research.

Payment for existing grants would also be suspended, so a shutdown would essentially halt most scientific research in the U.S.

National Institutes of Health

The NIH is also responsible for distributing scientific grants, and the shutdown would likely affect them in the same ways as the NSF. However, the NIH also maintains a number of medical experiments and clinical trials, all of which will stay active during a shutdown and will be managed by a skeleton crew. The NIH will also keep treating patients at the NIH Clinical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, but it won’t admit any new patients.

Department of Energy

The DOE will probably remain largely unaffected during a shutdown, though if the shutdown lasts long enough that could change. DOE facilities are mostly operated by contractors, so a shutdown shouldn’t affect them for at least one funding cycle. Depending on how long a shutdown continues, many DOE facilities could be mothballed.

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

Center for Disease Control

The CDC is probably the agency most impacted by a government shutdown, as it loses the ability to track disease outbreaks around the world. Most importantly, a shutdown would halt the CDC’s seasonal flu prevention program, particularly dangerous considering this year’s flu outbreak is worse than average. If the CDC loses the ability to properly manage the outbreak, this year’s flu is likely to get even worse.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association

One of NOAA’s primary responsibilities is to maintain the National Weather Service, which would continue running during a government shutdown. However, other scientific research would likely be suspended, and the agency’s fleet of research vessels would be ordered to return to port during a shutdown. This would interrupt and could potentially end many scientific experiments around the world.

Environmental Protection Agency

Update: According to reports, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt declared that the agency would remain completely open for a week even if the government shut down.

In the event of a government shutdown, the EPA will close almost completely. The agency will only remain open to respond to emergencies and disaster situations, and to continue criminal investigations. All other EPA programs, like air and water quality monitoring, will be suspended.

Interior Department

While national parks have been closed during government shutdowns in the past, the Interior Department has said it plans to keep most parks and monuments open during this possible shutdown. All monuments and open-air parks will still be open during a shutdown, though campgrounds, concession stands, and anything that requires constant staffing will not.

A Part of Hearst Digital Media
Popular Mechanics participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites.